Our World
by Kc495
Summary: Two boys, with the same face but two completely different hearts. Both in need of rescue. - In a universe where Haruhi has been there since the beginning. - The beginning of their world -... (("Do you wanna build a snowman with me?"))
1. Chapter 1

**Our World**

Prologue

* * *

The one who was not Hikaru, was Kaoru.

The one who was not Kaoru, was Hikaru.

They were one and the same, but different.

It made sense to them, yet no one could understand.

Except that person. The one who just came out of nowhere, and opened up a whole other world to them. Suddenly, there was center to their world. A middle person to stand between their left and right. Someone who made their world feel less empty, and made them feel less alone.

 _"Hey, let's play a game!"_

 _"Yeah!"_

 _"Let's play hide and seek!"_

 _"You're it!"_

 _"You can't start yet! Wait for me!"_

 _The children around them were screaming and squealing in laughter. Snow tossed under their feet as the ran away to hide, while one child was sitting behind a tree, counting, although messing up and having to start all over._

 _The twins sat on a lone bench. Their feet dangled just above the ground, as their laps getting covered in snow. They were quiet, watching everyone from a distance. No one spared them even a glance, and they had gone completely ignored._

 _That was okay. They didn't want to play with them anyway._

 _Hikaru had Kaoru, and Kaoru had Hikaru._

 _They wanted to go inside, where no one called them weird, or made fun of them for looking so alike, but their teacher wouldn't open the door until break-time was over._

 _"Go outside and play with the other children." She told them, before shutting the door behind them. "Your parents want you to make friends."_

 _They sat alone, watching everyone else run into the garden maze._

 _Hikaru squeezed his hand around his brother's, just to make sure he was still there._

 _Kaoru squeezed back._

 _They never felt alone. Everyone else always left them behind, but they never left each other's sight._

 _Wherever Hikaru was, Kaoru was right beside him._

 _Wherever Kaoru was, Hikaru was, too._

 _They were exactly the same._

 _But back then, they saw no difference._

 _They were one._

 _Individuality between the two did not exist._

 _Back then, no one needed to understand, and it didn't hurt when no one did._

 _Not until..._

 _"Hey, do you wanna make a snowman with me?"_

 _They looked up at a brown haired girl who spoke to them, but Hikaru was the only one who glared._

 _Kaoru blinked. "...Which one of us are you talking to?"_

 _The girl snickered, brushing away her messy fringe. "To both of you, silly!"_

 _He was confused. "There's nobody here named 'both of you'."_

 _Hikaru looked at him, shocked, as if he was giving away a great big secret that they weren't supposed to tell._

 _She looked no older than they were, yet there was a mature atmosphere in her tone. "Okay then," she paused to try and remember something she had heard from one of the other kids, "I'm talking to, Hikaru and, Kaoru."_

 _Hikaru... And, Kaoru?_

 _That made no sense to them._

 _They weren't the same person, of course They were different. There must be something about them that differed them from the other. It was so small, and vague that they hadn't even noticed it themselves._

 _"Oh really?" they said, "...which of us is Kaoru, and which of us is Hikaru?"_

 _Her hands tightened around her tiny snowball._

 _" **Can you tell**?"_

 _The little girl looked long and hard at the two of them, not even contemplating that it would be difficult, considering this is the first time they had actually met._

 _"Well I think..." she lifted her hand towards the boy on the right. "You're, Hikaru."_

 _That was it._

 _That was the first time it hurt._

 _That was when they realized... No one would be able to tell them apart._

 _That was the beginning._

 _They looked down at their feet. "...You guessed wrong."_

 _Her snowball fell out of her hands as a heavy pile of snow fell from the tree above them, smashing a snowman that another child had left abandoned._

 _She frowned, feeling her throat ache as she looked down at their sad eyes, wishing she hadn't said anything at all._

 _"I... I'm so sorry," she looked away. "Please don't cry."_

 _It was then that they realized... they both had tears in their eyes._

 _Kaoru gasped as his brother suddenly ripped his hand away. He whirled around, scared that he was going to leave, but he just needed his sleeve to wipe his face. Once he finished, Kaoru grabbed his hand again, holding it tight._

 _"We're not crying." Hikaru grumbled, alone._

 _How could they believe in anyone again?_

 _Was this what it felt like... to be disappointed?_

 _"Haruhi?"_

 _All three of them looked up at the sound of a soft voice in the distance. A brown haired woman tromped through the snow, that coaxed the courtyard. The woman looked tired and pale, but she looked down at the little girl with a warm smile._

 _It made the twins feel colder._

 _"Don't run off like that," She said, she grabbed her hand. "You'll get lost. C'mon, let's go find your father."_

 _"But, Mommy-"_

 _The girl looked over her shoulder as her mother pulled her away, watching the boys until they were too far way to see, and they watched her, until she vanished around the corner of the school's gate._

 _The laughter eventually died around the garden, as some children were found, while some got tired of the game and decided to quit. No one ever looked back at them like she did. They pointed their fingers and laughed at the distraught looks on their faces, then ran inside the school. Never looking back. Never bothering to ask what was wrong._

 _And they didn't want them to._

 _Now, they just wanted to be left alone._

 _They'd never let those walls down again._

 _Later that day, they forgot that little girl's name, and didn't care. Because they knew, they'd never see her again._

 _But they were grateful to her._

 _If it wasn't for her... They'd never would have created their world_.

* * *

 **AN: I posted this story last year, and It was originally meant to be a One-Shot, but after coming back to it, I have some fun ideas and decided rewrite it, so stay-tuned! Constructive criticism is appreciated.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Our World**

 _chapter 2_

* * *

The one who wasn't Kaoru was, Hikaru.

The one who wasn't Hikaru was, Kaoru.

They didn't have time for those who couldn't tell the difference.

 _"You see..." The timid girl in front of them paused for the fifth time, her hands trembling around the envelope she was trying not to let go of. "It's my birthday this Saturday. And..."_

 _The twins stood beside each other, with their backs to the wall, staring at her blankly, as if not paying her anymore more attention then they paid to the breeze that blew through their hair._

 _"I thought you might... want to come."_

Walls were built around their hearts. They were built strong, and were only built for two.

They were built from their fear of being hurt, the doubt that they'd never be noticed, and their insecurities that society held over their heads because of the way they looked.

They hated looking alike, but they were afraid to look any different.

Their individualities were practically bursting at the seams, but you can't help the blind.

 _Hikaru turned his eyes towards Kaoru and the brothers exchanged a look that they've learned to understand. They've made their own language to block out the entire world._

 _She was the daughter of one of their mother's business associates. Although they never learned her name, they were urged to be nice to her. They were sure she was, too._

 _He looked up through his fringe. Her eyes were focused on the ground as she held out her invitation to him._

 _"Which one of us are you asking?" he asked._

 _She swallowed, fidgeting in her shoes. "...Both of you."_

 _They were silent for a moment, exchanging another glance, before Kaoru reached out, slowly taking the envelope for himself._

 _"I thought that... we could be friends." She added hesitantly._

 _They both tensed. The paper crinkled between Kaoru's fingers._

 _"Tell you what," Hikaru said pushing himself away from the wall. He took a step closer to her, making a blush rise on her cheeks._

 _"If you can tell which one of us is which," he stooped his nose near her face, "we'll go to your birthday party. And we'll be your... friend."_

 _"Huh?"_

 _Kaoru smirked. "So which is it?"_

 _They both gave her the same haunting stare. Their eyes were just begging her to get it wrong. "Which one of us is, Hikaru?"_

 _The young girl puckered her lips, pouting at their sadistic game. Everyone in their grade had fallen victim to the Hitachiin's own version of Russian Roulette at least once. Everyone else simply stayed away from them just to avoid the embarrassment, but she's been in their class since elementary school. She'd been watching them from a distance for years._

 _After just a moment's thought, she threw her hand towards the eldest one._

The one who wasn't Kaoru was, Hikaru.

The one who wasn't Hikaru was, Kaoru.

They didn't have room in their hearts for people who didn't try.

 _"You're,_ _Hikaru_."

 _She was right._

 _Hikaru seized up. "Your reason?"_

 _She drew her hand back. "What'd you mean? I'm right, aren't I?"_

 _"You tell me."_

 _The nameless girl stuck her nose up, stiffly. "That's not fair. You only said I had to get it right, and I did."_

 _Kaoru glanced at his twin, watching a wicked smile stretch across his lips. Oh how they loved when they fought back._

 _He took a step forward, and bent his face down, almost nose to nose with the short girl. They liked the way they shriveled up, and backed away in fear. They liked that she started to tremble._

 _"Then prove it." He hissed._

 _She couldn't, and apparently wasn't even going to try. She threw her head back with a groan, turned on her heel and walked away._

 _They both fell silent, watching her walk away._

They always had the last word. The last laugh.

They always _won_.

And yet, somehow they always lost.

* * *

Class was starting. It was the start of a new year, their first year of high-school, and the students were picking their seats. They took turns yesterday at the class 1-A's assembly. Girls picked first, then the boys.

They always sat beside each other every year. Everyone made sure to avoid sitting between, or even beside them, but high school was different, they concluded. A lot of the new students didn't know who they were, therefore, didn't _know_.

The twins looked down at the empty chair between them, dreading that they'd have to sit beside a blubbering teenage girl all year. _Oh dumb_.

But as class started, one student stumbled through the door, quickly apologizing to the teacher for being late, and, with their big ugly bag, slumped into the seat between them.

 _At least it wasn't a girl_ , they both thought, looking at the apparent scholarship student in disgust. He was ugly, with his short, messy hair and dirty shoes. Judging from his brown, too big and too worn brown sweater, he couldn't even afford a school uniform. _Must be a... commoner._

The new boy ducked his head inside his text book and didn't say a word through the entire first lesson. Or the second. Or third. He annoyed them, hating that he didn't know he was in their space. They wanted to push him out of his chair, at least poke fun at the stain on his shirt, but as they were caught staring at him, the teacher scolded them to pay attention.

The last hour dragged on the worst. Hikaru clicked his pen, thrumming it against his paper, while Kaoru doodled something on his homework. The boy mumbled quietly to himself, reading his notes to himself.

Hikaru twitched, as the boy repeated everything the teacher said in a whisper.

At last the bell rang and the teacher hurriedly tried to remind them of homework and to study for the upcoming math exam, as all the students scrambled out of the classroom, eager to get to their clubs. The air was stiff until the ugly boy finally decided to get up and leave. _Good riddance_. That was torture.

Kaoru grabbed Hikaru's hand, as they both stood up.

"You're pretty brave." One of the last girls in the hallway muttered.

"I'd never be able to sit between the twins like that." Another one added.

They stopped.

 _The one that wasn't Hikaru, was Kaoru._

"They're _twins_?" They heard the new guy reply.

 _And the one who wasn't Kaoru, was Hikaru_

"How could you have not noticed? They're _identical_."

"I guess I didn't."

 _That was obvious._

They ignored him, made their way down the hall. They felt people staring. They heard them whispering, but they expected this. People were always surprised, and shrunk away. People were always afraid. _Good._

They liked it that way.

"Places everyone," Tamaki bustled around the club room, making sure not a single rose petal was out of place. He was the picture of perfection. His club also needed to reflect that. "It's a new year. New high school students. Things are gonna get busy."

He sat himself down in one of the chairs he deemed his throne. "Remember to act natural. And, _Hikaru_ \- fix your face. No one likes a frown."

Hikaru was about to shoot back, but the doors opened so he bit his tongue. Kaoru slipped his hand into his, and they straightened up, forcing on their practiced smiles to properly greet their new guest.

They froze, staring right into the eyes of that dirty commoner boy.

"Ah, sorry! _Wrong room_." His words stumbled as he struggled to get the heavy door back open. But fate had it locked.

"Hikaru, Kaoru," Kyouya turned to them, "This young man is in the same class as you, isn't he?" Saying that, as he already knew the answer.

 _Yes..._

They glared, staring the new kid down, their eyes pointing strings of fire, ready to set him and hideous glasses ablaze.

 _And what a strange development this was._


	3. Chapter 3

**Our World**

 _Chapter 3_

* * *

 _He gripped the soft,pink envelope between his fingers. His brother's name was written in small smooth strokes of black ink in the middle, hanging off a kiss, that was stamped in bright red lipstick._

 _It made him cringe._

 _"I'm not Kaoru," he said quietly. Well practiced disappointment dripping from his lips. "You must've stuck the letter in my desk by mistake."_

 _His eyes narrowed. "Right?"_

 _The girl in front of him burned an interesting shade of pink. "Right! I... I'm sorry. I didn't mean-"_

 _"To be honest," He held the letter out of her reach, when she tried to grab it back. "I always thought you were kind of cute."_

 _She stopped, blushing even brighter from how close he leaned into her. "...Really?"_

 _"Do you think you could like me instead?" He asked._

 _"I don't-"_

 _"I won't tell."_

 _"Well..." the short girl in front of him twirled her finger around the tips of one of her pigtails. "I guess if... you're okay with it, then so am I, Hikaru."_

 _The young Hitachiin twin stood up, a solemn look on his face as he turned towards the shrubs in the courtyard._

 _It wasn't their fault._

 _They were the one who just kept falling for it._

 _Honestly, it was starting to get old. Really._

 _"I see," he muttered. It didn't even hurt anymore. He was used to it. "Then... Hey, Hikaru! She said she'd be fine with you instead."_

 _With that, the other twin stepped out from behind the bushes, the same haunting smile on his face, knowing that they've won again. It was their game. They always won._

 _The girl gasped. Watching the 'real', Hikaru walk up to them._

 _"Wait..." she whined, clutching her hands to her chest. "So you are, Kaoru?"_

 _"No." He admitted. "But you can't tell, so what's it matter?"_

 _"Oh well, should'a known," Kaoru shrugged, throwing himself over his brother's shoulder. "You might have a sweet and pretty face but you're a terrible person, you know?"_

 _"W-what?"_

 _Hikaru scoffed, shoving his hands in his pockets. "By saying you'd take either of us."_

 _"You're really saying you don't want either of us." Kaoru finished._

 _"That's not fair," She cried, "Why are you so mean?"_

 _The girl didn't even bother to wipe her tears before running off. Their other classmates watched as she ran down the corridor. They all looked at the twins, giving them a reproachful glare, but no one cared enough to be humiliated._

 _It was a wonder what anyone even saw in them. They were crude and manipulative. They found amusement in causing distress, as if it were their pay back to the world of people who wronged them._

 _They wanted to be told apart._

 _Yet, they didn't want to be told apart._

 _Maybe there was charm in their mysterious, contradicted world that made everyone so curious, that made them want to be apart of it._

 _"No, you've got it all wrong," Hikaru sighed, ripping the love letter in half. "You're mean."_

* * *

A loud crash echoed throughout the club room. The air stilled, and for a moment, there was a pure, haunting silence. Everyone stared at the pieces of glass on the floor, not saying anything and, what it seemed to the tall boy in the corner, no one breathed either.

Hikaru and Kaoru peered over the banister, looking down at the broken vase. The horrified look on the commoner's face made them bite their tongues back from a laugh.

"You really did it _now_ , Commoner," Kaoru mocked, hanging over his shoulder.

"Yeah, way to go, Haruhi," Hikaru taunted. "We were going to auction it off for eight million yen."

" _Eight million yen_?" The boy, Haruhi, whirled around, his mouth opening and closing, in a fabulous impression of a goldfish. He blubbered, and started to awkwardly pick up the pieces. "I'll-... I'll pay you _back_."

They finally choked out their laugh. It coming out more scornful than intended. "With what money? You're _broke_."

In a sad attempt, Haruhi scrambled to pick up two pieces and tried to stick them together. Maybe some glue could-

He stopped, as there was a loud, authoritative snap from behind him and a large hand placed itself on his shoulder. Haruhi's eyes looked up pathetically from behind his large glasses, to see the tall blonde. He was giving him a hard, almost mischievous stare, that harbored his impending doom.

"Cheer up poor lad, don't look as if you're life is on the line." Tamaki said brightly, clearly oblivious to the weight of the situation, at least, that's how Haruhi felt. He seemed to be oblivious to _a lot_ of things in the room at that moment. "It was clearly an accident-"

He gawked, fighting back the urge to scream, _'it wasn't my fault!'_ but as it stood, his argument would probably mean nothing to them.

"We won't hold you for ransom," He added, in a tone that made it sound like he was being very generous, and Haruhi felt almost compelled to thank him. "Kyouya! What do you think?"

The boy in glasses, sighed. "That at this rate, we'll go bankrupt?"

"No, I mean, what do you think of the _plan_?"

"That I would much rather hold him ransom."

"Kyouya, no."

"Just for a little while-"

"Like I was saying!" After pausing to think, Tamaki stood up straight, straining a hero pose, totally not listening and ignoring everyone's glares. He spun around, as if he had just come up with the most brilliant idea. "You'll pay us back of course, but we're gentlemen so we'll go easy on you."

Haruhi shriveled up, still helplessly clinging to the broken pieces of the vase. "Can I just financ-"

"From now on, you'll serve in the host club, with us!" He paused again, for the dramatic effect he so very much loved.

He pointed his self-proclaimed royal finger, suddenly thinking of something rather clever if he did say so himself. "As... the Host club's dog!"

"Huh?!"

Haruhi finally collapsed, counting on his shaky fingers, how many years of unlawful service it would take to repay eight million yen. How many thousands were in a million?! How many... _hours_. The... the _Days_.

The twins whirled around, both in an enraged fluster.

" _Wait_ ," Kaoru lip curled. "You don't mean-"

"He's staying here-" Hikaru looked down at the dirty commoner boy in disgust. "With _us_?"

"Why not?" Tamaki smirked. "I mean, how else will he pay us back?"

"I suggested ransom."

"That's illegal, Kyouya."

"I know how to pull strings."

"Well I'm excited!" Huni suddenly chimed in, whooshing over to Haruhi, pulling him up to his feet. "You're one of us now, Haru-chan! I can't wait to hear all about what it's like being _poor_. Do you think poor people cake tastes the same as the ones we have? I'd like to try them."

Haruhi yanked his hand away, stumbling back and almost falling down again. He looked up at the circle of tall, heavily expensive boys that surrounded him, nearly feeling crushed. The two blondes wore their excitement on their sleeves, and the two darker, intimidating boys seemed indifferent, but the others. His new classmates. The... twins, sent chills down his spine. Their eyes were slanted down towards him as they hung off each other, as if gas-lighting his existence, trying to set him on fire.

He shifted away from them.

"There's no way," Hikaru argued obnoxiously. "He's hideous!"

"He'll scare customers away just by looking at him." Kaoru added. "He's a total clown."

Tamaki scoffed. Of course, he couldn't really deny it. Commoners were... well, not pretty. "Well, you're the experts, aren't you? Impress me."

"I'm not touchin' it!"

"What if it has _fleas_?"

Haruhi looked like he was about to retort, so one of them, the loud one, was shoved in front of him. His vision becoming full of fiery red hair. He looked dangerous just by his appearance, his eyes and the way he held himself. Haruhi took a step back, uneasy.

"Hold still." He growled.

Haruhi froze, closing his eyes tightly, until he felt his glasses slid off his face, and defensively tried to pull them back. "Wait! I can't see without those!"

"And you're nothing to _look at_ with them on." Hikaru barked back, though, immediately silenced as his jaw locked. Anything else insulting he had hanging odd his tongue vanished, as Haruhi blinked owlishly at him. His mouth was open, but all he saw was a blurry orange blob.

Hikaru stepped away.

 _A strange development indeed..._

Curious, Kaoru slid his arm over his brother's shoulder, to get a better look and-

 _Oh._

 _He... looked an awful lot like,_

 _A she._

Hikaru stopped to stubbornly point out to himself that she was still ugly and poor.

Haruhi looked up, tossing her gaze between him and Kaoru, trying to grab her glasses that they just slightly held out of her reach. Her bangs fell messily over her eyes.

Well... Hikaru thought.

Maybe not _that_ ugly.

He huffed.

But she was still poor.

Then, before Kaoru could conclude that she was still a piece of work, they were roughly shoved aside.

With a gasp, Tamaki snapped again.

"Kyouya! get this man a uniform."

Kyouya slapped his notebook shut, a glint in his glasses shining over his eyes. "You, _sir,_ are going to be in an _insane_ amount of _debt_."

Haruhi groaned.


End file.
